


Eternal

by fallingsnow6136



Series: Gentron Week 2020 [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Anxiety Attacks, Black Paladin Keith (Voltron), Blood and Violence, Electrocution, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Gen, Gentronweek, Leader Keith (Voltron), Paladin and Lion bonding, Physical Abuse, Recovery, Sentient Voltron Lions, Telepathic Bond, Torture, keith and black have a sweet bond
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:53:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25719136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallingsnow6136/pseuds/fallingsnow6136
Summary: Walking away doesn't break a bond. Ignoring a call doesn't mute it, it just makes it stronger. Keith realises the hard way just how sentient the Black Lion is and must make a decision to stand up for the bond that can never be broken.
Relationships: Keith & Black Lion (Voltron), Keith & Kuron (Voltron), Kuron & Black Lion (Voltron), Zarkon & Black Lion (Voltron)
Series: Gentron Week 2020 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1862101
Comments: 2
Kudos: 29
Collections: Gentronweek





	Eternal

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so here I am with another Gentron prompt – this one is a little bit angstier. Before I begin, I want to warn anyone who suffers from anxiety that this story will include anxiety attacks, both mild and severe. For anyone who struggles to read that kind of thing, please do not read ahead as I do not want to trigger you. It also features both intense emotional and physical abuse – the abuse is against the Black Lion, but as she is sentient, it may be disturbing, so it is another trigger I would like to warn for. There is also blood and torture, somewhat graphic descriptions. The prompt I will be using is ‘Telepathic Bond’ for this story. I would like to thank the lovely 'sunshinehime' for betareading this story for me.

Pidge’s fingers flew across the keyboard of her mini-computer as her forehead wrinkled in concentration. It had been a week since Black had been kidnapped and they had no luck finding her. Shiro had tried sensing her. Hunk and herself had tried numerous tracking devices but it was almost as if Black had either disappeared from the face of the universe or she had been cloaked very well.

Even now, she sat in the main room of the Castle of Lions in her usual position searching as best as she could. She couldn’t believe she hadn’t seen the trap that Haggar had lured them into – it had made it so much easier for Zarkon to steal the Black Lion from right under their noses.

“Pidge,” Shiro’s voice, urgent and strained with anxiety. “Anything?”

“No,” Pidge said, her fist clenching. “Wherever the Black Lion is being held, it’s either tightly cloaked or Haggar’s magic has created some sort of shield to keep us out.”

“Maybe we should contact Keith again,” Lance spoke up and Pidge could tell that her friend was frowning even without looking up.

“Yeah, but if Shiro couldn’t manage to connect with Black long enough to find her, why do we think that Keith will be able to?” Hunk pointed out. “I mean, Keith hasn’t piloted the Black Lion in awhile and Shiro was her Paladin first.”

Shiro sighed a little. “It’s worth a try, at least. I mean, I can’t seem to connect with Black. It looks like Black formed a strong connection with Keith before I got back.”

There was silence in the room for a while, allowing Pidge to add a few more satellites to try and track the Black Lion before Allura finally broke it.

“Coran, can you get a hold of the Blade of Marmora?” Allura asked.

“On it, Princess,” was Coran’s only reply and Pidge finally looked up, nodding.

“That might be necessary since if Keith can connect with the Black Lion, he may be able to pilot Black into a location where we can sense them,” Pidge said seriously before frowning at her computer. Her tech had never failed her before like this, so she was unsure of what to think of it. Matt had said it wasn’t a failure of their tech but more that Haggar was smart and her cloaking was stronger than their technology. Somehow, when it was Black that was taken, it wasn’t so easy to accept.

* * *

Keith had been constantly keeping in touch with the Blades about an update on the Black Lion and from what he knew, the Paladins were still searching. He tried to push down the nagging voice in the back of his head that told him he should be helping them – that Black was his friend too – because Shiro would be able to connect with Black. The bond between a lion and its Paladin is a strong one.

_ ‘If it's so strong then why hasn’t Shiro been able to detect Black yet?’  _ The nagging voice spoke again in his mind but he pushed it down, focusing on the mission he was on currently.

“Have you done it, Keith?” His fellow Blade member’s voice dragged him out of his thoughts.

“Almost,” Keith said, working quickly but he didn’t get a chance to do much more as a sharp ache stabbed his mind, making him feel as if the left side of his head was going to explode. He could barely hear his Blade members whispering to him, their voices fading into the darkness as he clutched the side of his head. He could feel a distant connection and he knew this sharp pain wasn’t his own.

_ Black?  _ He didn’t know why he had thought that, but his instinct was telling him that his former lion had something to do with this sudden migraine that had come out of nowhere. Now really wasn’t the time! He had to focus – he had to focus on the stealth mission but the pain was making it hard for him to concentrate.

“Zorex,” Keith gritted out. “Can you take over? I don’t want to ruin the mission.” It killed him to do it, but he needed to make sure they successfully completed the mission and he didn’t want his lapse in concentration to cost them that. He needed to get in touch with the other Paladins directly – well, through Kolivan but still. He wouldn’t step on Shiro’s toes by trying to connect with Black but she was his friend – he needed to know what was going on and maybe infiltrate wherever Zarkon was keeping his lion.

“Is everything ok?” Zorex mouthed as he finished up and Keith shook his head, not saying anything. The migraine was starting to die down so he began to help his ally so they could get the mission finished and head to Kolivan with the report. It seemed as if he didn’t need to tell Kolivan anything about the Paladins though because when they got there to file their report, Kolivan was on a call with them.

“Keith,” Kolivan said seriously. “The Paladins of Voltron wish to speak with you.”

Keith rubbed the side of his head, moving forward and allowing his Blade mask to disappear to reveal his face as he moved towards his friends. “Hey, guys.”

“Keith,” Pidge’s voice was urgent. “Have you been able to sense the Black Lion?”

Keith could hear Pidge’s voice having an edge of desperation and he wanted to tell her about the migraine but refrained from it. He didn’t want to override Shiro, after all. “I haven’t.” His mouth burned with that lie and a stab of guilt hit him. “Shiro, can’t you sense the Black Lion? I mean, you have a bond with her.”

“I don’t think she’s really accepted me back, Keith,” Shiro said, a slight edge to his voice.

Keith frowned at this - no, that couldn’t be true. His brother was a way better leader and head of Voltron than he had ever been, after all.  _ Still, I do have a connection with Black which is probably a little too strong, given she’s always checking up on me.  _ He hadn’t told the others this of course or the Blades but he and Black talked, well at least before Zarkon had kidnapped her. She also made sure to always nag him to take care of himself and promise to come back soon. He never responded to the part about the promise but he did tell her he was fine. He shook himself out of these thoughts. “Shiro, you have to try. This is the Black Lion we’re talking about, after all. You have to try to connect with her.”

“I am trying, Keith,” Shiro said, sounding a little impatient. “But I can’t hear her and she’s not responding to me.”

“Keith, it’s plausible that Shiro may not be able to connect to the Black Lion because the witch’s magic is blocking it,” Pidge intervened softly. “Now, I’m not saying that will make it any easier for you to connect with her, but can you try to get some information on where Zarkon could be keeping her?”

Keith paused at this for a moment, before nodding. “I can try, at least. But Shiro, keep trying okay?” He smiled. “You’re the Black Lion’s Paladin now, I know you’ll be able to sense her.”

Shiro did smile back at this. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep trying.”

However, either Shiro hadn’t kept his word about that - or Black just wasn’t responding to him, at all. Keith had kept his word though, looking into different areas where there were prisons. Whilst this did help in releasing a good number of oppressed prisoners, it didn’t help in finding Black. 

One month passed. The migraines that would crop up in the middle of a mission had grown stronger, sometimes accompanied by a sudden feeling of dread that would overwhelm Keith. 

_ I can’t keep doing this.  _ Keith thought.  _ The others aren’t having any success in this and Black is calling out to me.  _ Every ounce of him had pushed him to rush back as soon as he had heard that Black had been captured. Shiro had even asked him to. But he never wanted to feel that awkwardness - even the slightest bit of competition that he had felt between himself and Shiro.  _ It’s almost like I’m choosing between them but Shiro and the others will never abandon Black - right? They’d find a way. Shiro knows how to solve every problem.  _ At least, that was what he had said to constantly convince himself but that was slowly crumbling. The lack of response from Black, the constant failure from the other Paladins, and the sudden attacks of dread. He was standing in the Blade headquarters staring at the ground in concentration.  _ Black, where are you? Are you okay?  _ That was the other thing that was strange - it was clear that Black was reaching out to him - he could feel the panic, the dread that was coming from her - but she didn’t talk to him. She didn’t answer his questions - she didn’t respond to him like she used to. What was Zarkon doing to her?  _ Shiro may be able to solve everything but he needs help. Black needs help. My friends need help. _

“You shouldn’t stand here so distracted,” Kolivan’s voice pulled him out of his thoughts and he stared at the older Blade for a moment.

“Kolivan, I need to go back to help the other Paladins,” Keith said firmly, looking into the other’s eyes. “Shiro and the others aren’t having any luck finding Black and our missions aren’t nearly as successful without Voltron.”

Kolivan’s expression was serious - it always was but he nodded. “The universe stands a much higher chance with Voltron. With the Black Lion - the head having been captured for one month and two weeks - it has put the Galra Empire at a serious advantage. The only card we have in our favour is the fact that Zarkon has not been able to claim command of the Black Lion as of yet.”

Hearing this made Keith’s heart surge - that meant Black was still fighting back. His fist clenched - that was good, he and Shiro could save her together. Once she was safe and back with the others, everything would be okay. He was about to speak up again when the familiar sharp pain shot to the side of his head again, this one stronger than ever before. His hands were trembling - he could feel his throat begin to tighten, his breathing beginning to get shaky. His heart began to race so fast that he clutched at it, feeling the beating become faster and more rapid. 

_ B-Black? T-Talk to me...what’s going on? _

“Keith, what’s going on?” Kolivan’s voice was urgent - alarmed - but he couldn’t focus on that. A painful scream left his lips as he fell to the ground, the back of his Blade armour beginning to crack as he struggled to remember how to breathe. Another scream left him as something punched him hard in the stomach, causing his front armour to crack as he began coughing.

“K-Kolivan,” Keith finally managed to cough out. “I-it’s Black. He’s hurting her. G-get the Paladins!” He knew he should wait for them - he knew he needed back up but he could feel Black’s agony, managing to muffle another cry as a gash cut through his lower abdomen. 

_ “You’re worthless. You’ve always been worthless. What use is a weapon who wants something as pathetic as friendship and comradery? You were made to destroy, Black. You were made to make me powerful. And if I have to break you physically to remind you, that is what I will do.” _

“G-get t-the h-hell away from her,” Keith croaked out, beginning to cough out blood into his hands, head throbbing so much but every time he tried to get back to his feet, another blow of pain would knock him back down. This time was no different, in fact, it was worse. When he attempted to get up again, the blow knocked straight into his chest, shattering his Blade armour and he stumbled, feeling the world around him begin to fade away, everything going dark.

* * *

“Just a few more ticks.”

“Will he really be any better in a few more ticks?”

“Why didn’t he tell us he could feel Black’s pain?”

Keith was slowly awoken from his slumber by the voices of the Paladins. He used it to ground himself as he came out of the healing pod.

“Keith!” Hunk was the first one to pull him into a hug and Keith wrapped his own arms around his friend for a moment, not able to find the words to speak.

“Are you okay?” That was Shiro and he sounded concerned.

“It’s not about me right now,” Keith croaked out. “We need to get to Black, please. He was torturing her...I felt every blow, every hit, every punch, every strike.” His eyes stung slightly and he clung tighter to Hunk. He had never felt pain so deeply before - even through the things, people said about him - even though everyone had given up on him - labelled him as a hopeless case before Shiro.  _ I don’t care about any awkwardness anymore - I can’t give up on Black, not now. _

“Hey Keith, take it easy,” Hunk soothed gently before anyone else could speak. “We’ll go to Black. You were pretty badly beat up though, you should slow down a little. The rest of us can go get Black ok?”

“No,” Keith pulled away from Hunk now. “I’m the one she’s been calling out for this whole time. I didn’t want to get in the way of anything, Shiro.” He looked to his brother. “But even when you guys contacted me, I could feel Black’s panic. I would be in the middle of a Blades mission and suddenly feel a large migraine, sometimes even trembling and shaking. I knew it was Black.”

“Keith,” Shiro said softly. “You should have told us.”

“I know,” Keith’s voice cracked at this. “I should have. I did something stupid, but I have to make up for it now by saving Black. I have to go to her.” 

“You’re not going anywhere,” Shiro said firmly before he smiled. “On your own, that is. With Pidge’s tracking device and your link, we should be able to find her in no time.”

Keith relaxed at this. That was good - Shiro wasn’t upset at him. His brother could solve most things - but even he needed help sometimes.

* * *

Black was used to the yelling - despite how long it had been, it wasn’t something she could forget. The disappointment - the yelling - the accusations that Black had chosen her fellow lions over him - it was all still clear in her mind. Shiro fighting Zarkon for her - and Keith’s gentleness might have helped her heal somewhat but it didn’t erase those memories. The good thing about that was that despite the slight sting, she was able to tune out Zarkon’s words - especially since she didn’t even feel a slight familiarity to this Zarkon. It was easy to just think of him as a monster. His presence would always unsettle her and send her into a minor panic attack but somehow, that didn’t seem to soothe his rage enough.

So one day, he had decided to attach some sort of strange magnetic on her large metallic head. He only had to press a button and it would send electric shock waves through her. If she could scream - she would have as numerous scars began cracking through her machines each time the shock went off. She could barely see through the pain, let alone pay attention to the scathing words Zarkon let out.

“You’re worthless. You’ve always been worthless. What use is a weapon who wants something as pathetic as friendship and comradery? You were made to destroy, Black. You were made to make me powerful. And if I have to break you physically to remind you, that is what I will do.”

The shocks continued until the glow in her eyes went out. Her metallic body was now indented with scars and scratches grazing the one untouched surface. She could feel herself unable to move and heard Zarkon mutter “Hopefully, this will shock you to your senses” before he left. She didn’t know when she lost consciousness but she was brought to her awakened state by Red blowing open the cage door. Red always did like to make an entrance.

“Black!” She heard Keith call out but this time, she really didn’t have the energy to respond to their connection or tell him she was okay. She just wanted everything to end - to fade away.

Keith could still feel the connection between them - he could feel Black’s exhaustion, breath catching in his throat as he saw her condition. His heart sunk and his hands clenched into fists. He had really screwed up and even now, he wasn’t sure he would have gotten to her soon enough, had Hunk and Pidge not used his quintessence that connected him and Black to the tracking device. It had given them an exact location.  He ran up to her and touched her metal body, which was colder than he ever felt it. Looking at the damaged chassis made his throat seize up.  Every scratch - every scar made him want to give Zarkon that pain back ten-fold.  He turned at the sound of footsteps behind him and his eyes locked onto the monster who wore quite a smug smirk on his face.

“You’re too late,” Zarkon said coldly. “She’s broken. Look at her, her pride, her fearlessness, it's all gone.”

Keith clenched a fist, the other Paladins moving to his side, having come in the other lions because if they were going to beat this monster, they would need Voltron. “I will never give up on Black. Even if you’ve shattered her into a thousand pieces, I’ll pick up every piece and piece her back together. Walking away from a bond doesn’t mean a bond is broken. It doesn’t matter if I’m not Black’s Paladin right now. I’ll always be her friend.” He moved forward, touching the damaged metal. “I’m sorry, Black. I’m sorry I didn’t follow my instincts. It doesn’t matter if you’re hurt or broken. I was broken and able to be saved.” He looked at Shiro as he said this, who was watching him closely before turning back to Black. “I won’t give up on you. We can do this...we can do this together.” He closed his eyes, focusing on the bond with Black - a bond, which had never truly been broken and he could hear her. His eyes opened and a glow surrounded the both of them. His whole body was glowing and he felt as if he were floating all of sudden, sinking into Black’s pilot seat with ease. He couldn’t see himself or his hands piloting her.

“Keith!” He could hear his friends cry.

“Where did you go? Oh no, did you get hurt? Did Black turn you invisible?” That was Hunk and he had to laugh a little at Hunk’s familiar panic as Yellow floated above him. 

“I’m okay,” Keith managed to say. “I’m not sure how this happened, but I think I’ve become one with Black. Shiro!” He used his new power to allow Black’s mouth to open to Shiro. “Let’s all form Voltron together and get out of here. It doesn’t have to be one of us.”

Shiro hesitated for a brief second before entering Black. He felt an invisible hand close around his, placing it on the piloting handle.

“Let’s do this,” Keith spoke quietly. “Let’s do this together.”

Shiro chuckled a bit, tightening his own hand around the handle. “Always.” 


End file.
